Club unveils #VoteHitsMcGehee shirts to support third baseman's campaign

PHOENIX -- Third baseman Casey McGehee is a candidate in the National League's Final Vote for the last spot on the NL All-Star team, but if McGehee comes up short, he has plenty planned for the break.

"I've got [three] big plans," McGehee said. "I'm going to catch some fish, see some of my friends, and I've never actually got to cut my own grass at my own house because it's already brown and dead by the time I get home. So I'm going to borrow somebody's lawn mower and I'm going to go cut my grass."

McGehee said the schedule worked out for him to go to his Jackson, Tenn., home during the break -- that is, if he isn't in Minneapolis for the Midsummer Classic.

"I've never taken the time to go home during the All-Star break," McGehee said. "Just all kind of worked out this year where the schedule made sense to do it. It'll be a good change of pace for a couple days."

But his teammates are doing what they can to make sure their third baseman keeps that trend going.

On Sunday, outfielder Giancarlo Stanton, who will start for the NL at designated hitter, said McGehee being snubbed for the initial roster made him "pretty mad." And on Monday, the team debuted shirts with the Twitter hashtag "#VoteHitsMcGehee" on them.

"We're going to try to do everything we can to get this guy into the All-Star Game," manager Mike Redmond said. "He's had such a great first half, and has been such a big part of our team, so we're trying to do everything we can to help him without him having to lobby for himself."

Immediately following the announcement of the All-Star rosters on Sunday, fans began voting to select the final player for each league's 34-man roster via the 2014 All-Star Game MLB.com Final Vote Sponsored by Experian. Fans can cast their votes from a list of five players from each league until the winners are announced after the voting concludes on Thursday at 4 p.m. ET.

Fans can also cast votes on the mobile web at MLB.com/vote or via text message. To receive the Final Vote ballot, text the word "VOTE" to 89269. To vote for a specific player, fans can text their choice to 89269. For example: Text "A3" to vote for AL Player 3 or "N3" to vote for NL Player 3. Standard message and data rates may apply. Text "STOP" to end and "HELP" for information. Mobile voting in Canada also is available and fans should text their choices to 101010.

For the third consecutive year, the All-Star Game MLB.com Final Vote will include social balloting participation, as Twitter support from the 10 candidates' fans over the last six hours of balloting will count toward their final vote totals. From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET on Thursday, any tweet that includes a designated player hashtag will be tabulated as part of the official vote total used to determine the winners. Fans will be able to follow @MLB for the latest standings updates over the course of the entire four-day voting period.

The final phase of All-Star Game voting will again allow fans to help choose the Ted Williams All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award presented by Chevrolet. During the Midsummer Classic, fans will vote exclusively online at MLB.com and via Twitter in the 2014 All-Star Game MLB.com MVP Vote Sponsored by Pepsi, and their collective voice will represent 20 percent of the overall vote that determines the recipient of the Arch Ward Trophy.

MLB.TV Premium subscribers, for the first time, will be able to live stream the All-Star Game via MLB.TV through FOX's participating video providers. Access will be available across more than 400 platforms that support MLB.TV, including the award-winning MLB.com At Bat app. MLB.com will provide extensive online coverage of the All-Star Week festivities.

The 85th All-Star Game will be televised nationally by FOX, in Canada by Rogers Sportsnet and RDS, and worldwide by partners in more than 200 countries via MLB International's independent feed. ESPN Radio and ESPN Radio Deportes will provide national radio coverage of the All-Star Game. MLB Network and SiriusXM will also provide comprehensive All-Star Week coverage. For more information, please visit allstargame.com.

Adam Lichtenstein is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.